Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, the most powerful figure in the Texas Senate for more than a decade, is seeking a fourth term against Democratic state Rep. Vikki Goodwin of Austin. Polling suggests the race is close, KUT reports.
Patrick’s path to the job was unusual. A Houston sportscaster at KHOU starting in 1979, he later lost a sports-bar business to bankruptcy, returned to radio, and by 1988 was hosting conservative talk on KSEV. He won a state Senate seat in 2006 and unseated Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst in the 2014 GOP runoff.
Since then he has reshaped how the Senate works. In 2015 he lowered the votes needed to bring a bill to the floor from 21 to 19, and in 2021 to 18, making it easier for the Republican majority to pass its priorities. The school choice program he championed became law in 2025 with $1 billion for the 2026–27 school year.
His next big push is “Operation Double Nickel,” a plan to lower the age for certain school property-tax benefits from 65 to 55. It is a 2027 legislative priority and would need approval from lawmakers and then voters. He also backs a new law that would lower schools’ academic ratings if they keep books he says violate state law; librarians and educators dispute how he characterizes many of the targeted titles.
Patrick also pushed a ban on intoxicating THC products over objections from business and veterans groups; Gov. Abbott vetoed it and called for regulation instead. Goodwin is challenging Patrick on THC and property taxes. Patrick did not respond to KUT’s interview request.
Why it matters. The lieutenant governor sets the Senate’s agenda, which makes this the most consequential down-ballot race in Texas. School choice, property-tax relief and what children can check out of school libraries all ran through Patrick’s Senate. Voters who care about those issues should look closely here, not just at the top of the ticket.
The other side. Critics, including some senators quoted by KUT, say lowering the debate threshold made it “easier to pass bad legislation”; allies say it ended a minority veto and let voters’ priorities move.
Open questions. How “Double Nickel” would be paid for, and what Goodwin’s own property-tax plan would cost.
